INTEGRO
by Roxius
Summary: An original fiction, but heavily based after The Drifting Classroom and Battle Royale. 18 people on death row are given a chance at freedom...by having to explore a newly discovered hidden dimension. Warning: harsh language, gore, yaoi, yuri, het, etc.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This fic is mainly completely my work, although much of it is influenced by the likes of various anime/manga and video games, especially _The Drifting Classroom, Battle Royale, BioShock, Alive, Half-Life 2,_ etc. There are also references to various real-world things, as well.

It's all supposed to have a very anime-ish feel to it, I think. Also, it switches between different character P.O.V.s and third-person view at times, especially later on.

I actually drew this as a comic once, and it was 20 chapters, filling up a single notepad. Too bad I don't have a scanner to put it up on DevArt, but I can draw alot better now than how it looks, so that wouldn't be a good idea. This fic version, however, has some changes, including more character development and other sub-plots I never got a chance to fit in, and more gory violence and whatnot. So, please review and tell me what you think, so I can know if I should continue or not!

* * *

_I...I didn't mean to kill them..._

_I was just so...so angry, I completely lost control..._

_My mother...my father...James...my beloved Saiko..._

_I smashed their heads, broke their necks, shattered their bones..._

_...and I did it with a metal baseball bat...and I did it...for no reason..._

_I don't have a reason for killing four people, two of them my parents, one a family friend, and the last one my fiancee..._

_I had absolutely no reason to murder them like that...but I did it anyway..._

_Am I...a monster? Am I...evil? Am I..._

_...insane?_

_"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!"_

* * *

I awoke when I felt a drop of water splash against the skin of my cheek. My guilt still hadn't left me...it hurts so much sometimes...

It had been only three days since the police arrested me that my punishment was decided by the jury: death by electrocution. It was scheduled to take place in a hidden underground chamber a month from today. After receiving the news, I was basically left to rot in my jail cell, doing nothing but wait for my death to finally come. Every day it's the same for me: sleep, wake up, sit around and think for five goddamn hours, eat some weird wet brown crap they claim as 'food', sit around some more, and then sleep. Even worse, there was nothing to even THINK about, so I was left in a state of painful boredom.

However, only about a few days into my jail time (I had long ago given up on keeping track of time, so I had no idea how long it had been), I had probably my first real thought in a long while: 'I wonder how Inuzuma is doing...does he know what I did to mom and dad?'

My older brother Raiichi, who goes by the nickname of 'Inuzuma' because of his messy light-blond hair, was currently living in Japan, working with some small unknown film company to create 'The Greatest Movie of 2010'. However, judging his personality, I can't help but feel it'll probably end up being some crappy low-budget porno flick. Yeah...Inuzuma was like that. It was so hard to contact him, wherever the hell he was staying, that he might not even know that I murdered our parents without reluctance...

"Hey."

I look up, and I see that cocky bastard sneering at me again; the officer charged with guarding my cell. He looked young, about his late 20s or early 30s, and he had the kind of attitude that made you want to just punch the guy for the hell of it. He thinks and acts like he's some sort of goddamn king, but he's just a poorly-paid security guard at a shitty prison building. Most of the time he just sits around and listens to his i-pod, but today he seemed more interested in talking to me...what a dumbass.

"Hey...I'm talking to ya." The guard snapped, banging his nightstick against the prison bars. As usual, he couldn't help but be a big pain in the ass, so I just ignored him and continued to stare ahead. However, that bastard just couldn't keep his goddamn mouth shut.

"What's wrong? You scared of dying? Bet you wish you didn't kill those people now, didn't ya? It's funny, though...I've read your book. The only one you've ever published, right? Well, all those reviews about it were right...it sucked fuckin' cock! You can't write worth a damn!"

I was used to hearing words like that. It was called 'INTEGRO'...and it was universally panned by the critics. Now that I think about it, maybe the stress of having my first and only book end up such a failure was one of the reasons why I did what I did...

"I'm glad you'll finally die like the loser you are! Too bad I don't get to see it! I bet it'll be awesome! I'll laugh at your pathetic charred corpse, bitch!"

Now I just wanted to sleep, and this dumbass was ruining that, so I decided to speak up. Normally, I'm a quiet, meek guy, but these last few days have really worn me to the breaking point. "...Shut the fuck up..."

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" he snapped. God, he was just like that annoying brat that some sad broad has to take along into the clothing store, and it ends up ruining everyone's mood. If anything, I wouldn't have minded being in jail so much if this guy was the one I killed instead.

I overheard him snarl something under his breath. "I oughta beat the shit out of you..." Heh. I couldn't help but smirk at his comment. If I just had a metal bat in my hand, then HE would be the one who would get the shit beat out of him...

Suddenly, I heard footsteps. That bastard guard immediately straightened his posture and stood still, always having to look good in front of his superiors. I figured this was just another jail check, making sure all the prisoners were still inside their cells. However, I must admit I was a little surprised when two large guards, much larger than dumbass boy, stopped in front of my cell and unlocked the door.

"Come with us." one of the guards told me in a deep voice. They both had pistols at their sides, and their right hands were cautiously hovering over them just in case...so I had no choice but to go along. I wouldn't be able to make a break for it, it seemed. Even if I tried, I'd just end up being shot and die earlier than when I was due...

...which, considering what I end up going through later on, might not have been so bad.

* * *

I walked down what essentially was probably the longest hallway ever invented by man-kind, the two bulky guards leading me ahead. I noticed the guard on the right happen to lightly tap the other guard's ass for just a second, and I really felt like killing both of them just to get that new disturbing image out of my mind.

'Ugh...faggots...I'm no homophobe, but I still hate them...wait...doesn't that mean that I am a homophobe?!No, I'm not...I'm not...geez, this is annoying...'

After what felt like an hour of endless walking, we finally came to the end...which was just a small metal door at the end of the hall. The two guards both glanced at me, giving me almost pitiful looks, and then opened the door. As soon as I walked in, I immediately knew that this wasn't going to end well for me. Waiting for me was a long-haired hunch-backed man wearing a lab coat and spectacles...and about 17 other people, all of them wearing the traditional black-and-white-stripes and standing side by side.

"Uh..."

"SHUT UP." One of the guards, I don't give a damn about separately naming them, grabbed me by the collar and forced me to stand next to the most frightening black man I had ever seen. He towered over me, his gleaming body pumped with muscles. Various cuts and tattoos covered his body, and there were piercings on his lips and ears. Seeing him brought back my meek, wimpy personality, and I did my best just to stand in his shadow and keep myself hidden from his mighty gaze. Strangely enough, though, I feel like I've seen him before...in a newspaper or something, maybe...

Suddenly, the man in the lab coat stomped once on the floor, and I jumped. For some reason, I was beginning to feel scared...a sense of dangerous foreboding swelling within me...

"Now, my subjects," the man purred in a soft voice, "Before we begin, I think it would be best if we first introduced ourselves and tell why we're on death row, don't you think? We'll start at the end of the row," he glanced down opposite from me, "...and then end with our newest addition to our group." he concluded, bringing his eyes back to me. Even through his glasses, I could tell he was giving me the most obnoxiously cocky glare anyone could ever give. I really wanted to throttle him...or run away crying. I'm a bit bipolar that way, I guess.

It took a bit, but finally the first person at the end of the row walked up and stood in front of everyone. He was a rather overweight young man with curly red hair that reminded me of an Annie musical I went to once when I was a boy. He put on a little sheepish grin as he nervously said, "My name is Redd Sanders. I'm on death row for kidnapping, raping and devouring several small girls back in my hometown...tee hee..."

Then, he bowed and quickly ran back to his spot without another word. I was speechless. What the fuck is this? What are we...first-graders on our first day of school? Why are we introducing ourselves to the class?!

The next person walked up, and it was a timid-looking young woman with raven black hair so long it hid her eyes from view. She quickly stammered, "My...my...my n-name is S-S-Sarah. I'm on death row, because...I invited all of my friends to dinner one day...and poisoned their drinks and killed all 15 of them." Then, like the one before her, she bowed and quickly ran back.

Things went on like this for a while, and I eventually learned about everyone, their names and their crimes:

Jackal, a menacing young man with blood-red hair in a style similar to that of Ace Ventura, who was placed on death row for going around Kentucky and murdering people with an actual Japanese sword, which happened to be a family heirloom.

Teddy, some teenage freak who looks EXACTLY like T.R. himself, and is going to be executed for blowing up a classroom full of students because their teacher once said that Obama was better than Roosevelt.

Larry Nicoles, a tall lanky bald guy with a permanent smile stretched out on his thin face, who is on death row for murdering a family of three (mother, father, daughter) with a pistol he had kept due to being an ex-cop.

Moki, a tough-looking Asian bastard covered in scars and tattoos, he's on death row for being partly responsible in a mass gang execution that took place in New York a year ago under the orders of another gang he was following orders from, called 'Xeno'. I recognized that name well; they were the most feared gang in all of New York before their boss was finally arrested and put on death row. He's probably dead now, though...

Zeke, another tough-looking guy with white dreadlocks, and he was also partly responsible for the mass gang execution.

Chan-Chan (if that is his real name), another tall guy with big ears and a sad face, and he was placed on death row for strangling his girlfriend to death after finding out she had given birth to a baby from having an affair with another man. He bashed the baby's head in with a brick after finishing her off.

Sammy Wo, a young Chinese boy with half-white/half-black hair and heterochromic irises, he looked only about 14 years old, and he just says that he's on death row for "doing something naughty". He's probably the most suspicious out of any of these freaks.

Marisa, a young bitchy woman who unfortunately reminded me of a female version of that security guard, and she was placed on death row for setting fire to her father's house during a big gala, killing everyone inside including her parents. She has long blond hair and is a certified pyromaniac.

Gob (another questionable name), another lanky fellow with giant elf-like ears as well as a swollen left eye, only mumbled a bit under his breath, so I had no idea what he did to get him put on death row.

Haley Storm, a plump woman with slitted eyes, curly locks and large lips, and she's on death row for smuggling tons upon tons of illegal drugs into the country, as well as for murdering most of her less trustworthy suppliers to protect herself.

Eddy, a young man with long brown hair that rested on his shoulders, who not only entered America from his home country of Germany through illegal means, but he also was a well-known genius terrorist for a while, and he even once attempted an assassination on the president, but failed and ended up here after his previous crimes were reviewed.

Wally, a guy with long hair and the biggest chin and dinkiest nose I had ever seen, and he ended up on death row for attacking people in the ocean and devouring their corpses. I noticed his eyes were slightly parted over onto the sides of his head, and he had a mouth full of huge jagged teeth, giving him an almost shark-like appearance.

Magenta, a tall woman with a pointy nose and long red hair that ran down her back and overlapped her left eye, and she was placed onto death row for murdering five men that had gang-raped her as a child.

Clarice, another woman with an eye-patch covering her right eye, and her reasons for being on death row was for murdering her drunkard father and uncle, who were having an incestuous relationship and violently mistreating her despite the fact she was an adult. She was originally a hikikomori.

Now, after all of that, it was just me and Mr. Big, Black and Scary. I watched the large man as he stepped up, turned to face all of us, and said in a deep yet sincere voice, "My name...is Billy Jeeves. I was the former boss of the crime syndicate 'Xeno'. That is my reason for being on death row..."

My eyes widened, my hands shook, and my pulse quickened. This man...this large, menacing man standing now back next to me, was once the leader of the most feared gang in America? The very gang that even had control over the Governor of the city? Now I was really worried...this wasn't good...not good at all...

"Come on." the scientist told me, "Hurry up...so we can finally, finally begin."

I nod, although I don't know why, and I perform the same act as everyone who had gone before me. I take in a deep breath and say, "My name is Alex Mikami. I am half Japanese, half American. I murdered both my parents, a family friend and my fiancee with a metal baseball bat for absolutely no reason at all..."

As I finished, I noticed Sarah sniffle a little. For some reason, it made me angry. Was she feeling bad for me? Was she feeling bad...FOR ME?! That bitch doesn't know who she should really be feeling bad for!! I wanted to yell at her, but the scientist immediately pushed me back to standing beside Billy Jeeves, who didn't seem any worse for wear.

Clapping his hands together once, the scientist rubbed them with glee as he exclaimed, "Yes! Now that introductions are done, we can begin my little experiment! My name is Dr. Mon te Seung and-" He suddenly pulled out a tape recorder and played 'House of the Rising Sun' by Pink Floyd.

"...YOU ARE ALL GOING ON AN ADVENTURE!" Dr. Mon te Seung shouted, jumping around like a little kid to the music.

This was the most ridiculous thing I had ever heard. This has got to be a joke...or a really gay dream. Hopefully it was the first one.

"...This is one fucked-up joke you're pulling on us, you goddamn faggot! Do you even know what you're saying? Can't we just go back to our cells and wait for our executions in peace?!" snapped Eddy suddenly in a thick German accent; even though he wasn't speaking to me, his sudden outburst caught me off-guard. At that moment, Dr. Mon te Seung stopped dancing, and he threw the recorder against a wall. It shattered to pieces with a great flash and loud boom.

"YOU IDIOTS DON'T KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE...TO BE RIDICULED LIKE THIS! YOU...JUST...DON'T KNOW! JUST SHUT THE FUCK UP AND LISTEN TO WHAT I HAVE TO SAY...!" Dr. Mon te Seung suddenly screamed, his face red and veins bulging on his forehead.

Eddy seemed to have shrunk back after that outburst, so Dr. Mon te Seung immediately calmed down and began to speak in a soft voice again. "You see, I have been given special permission by the president himself to conduct an experiment...a very special experiment."

"You mean...you're gonna cut us open...or inject weird chemicals into our bodies?!" Sarah shrieked.

Dr. Mon te Seung shook his head and turned his back to the group. Taking a single stick of pocky out of his chest pocket, he began to munch on it as he continued, "I have signed all the documents, all the papers...and the government paid for it all...this is your chance to not only escape your death penalty, but to be allowed back out onto the streets with a cleared slate...however, all you need to do is participate in my experiment..."

I couldn't believe it; I was actually being offered a chance to regain my freedom? Judging from the looks on everyone else's faces, they couldn't believe it either. They weren't sure whether to be hopeful...or doubtful at this weirdo's promises.

Then, Dr. Mon te Seung walked over to a large contraption hidden underneath a light-brown drape. Oddly enough, this was my first time noticing it, despite the fact that it was so huge. Reaching up, the doctor removed the drape, revealing a large mechanical circular machine, with a giant empty hole in the middle of it.

Smiling widely, Dr. Mon te Seung bowed in front of the giant device and announced, "THIS, MY TEST SUBJECTS...IS THE GATEWAY TO A NEW WORLD."

"...Excuse me?" Eddy said; it seemed his confidence was returning.

"I have created a machine that opens a portal to another dimension...a wild, dangerous dimension...an untamed dimension of unknown secrets...and the president has requested me to collect data on this world, so that we, the Americans, can eventually migrate there and create a new global utopia!"

"That's a load of crap!" Jackal snarled, baring his teeth. He was definitely one guy I didn't want to get on the bad side of.

"No, no, no! It is very, very true!" Dr. Mon te Seung replied, doing a little spin on his tiptoes, "However, I certainly cannot go into that unknown world, so I asked the president to somehow supply me with test subjects to send instead...and those test subjects are all of you."

"THAT'S IDIOTIC!" Eddy barked, "EVEN IF WE DO GO IN THERE FOR THE SAKE OF RETRIEVING DATA, HOW ARE YOU GOING TO GET IT?! I'M PRETTY SURE THAT THERE WON'T BE ANY PHONE RECEPTION THERE! YOU JUST WANT TO SEND US TO DIE, DON'T YOU? SPEAKING OF WHICH...HOW CAN WE SERIOUSLY BELIEVE THAT YOU CREATED A PORTAL TO ANOTHER DIMENSION?!"

Dr. Mon te Seung smirked and his expression suddenly became malicious. "Because...it's the truth, you fuckin' dick-sucker. Why else would 18 international death row criminals be called out of their dim little jail cells and be brought here? Did you ever wonder about THAT?"

I sure as hell didn't.

"Anyway...you will all be sent in as 3 groups of 6, and you must survive an entire month within the dimension. After a month's passing of time, you will receive a special message from me, and the portal will reopen in a certain latitude-longitude that I will divulge to you. Then, whomever has survived the entire month and reaches the portal in the next hour after the announcement will be given their freedom! Sounds good, eh?"

"...It sounds way too ridiculous to be real..." Eddy remarked, his voice faltering.

"Just think of it like you're a part of the Boy Scouts and your team is going out on a hike and ends up getting lost." Dr. Mon te Seung said nonchalantly as he waddled over to a control panel set into the wall. His words just made me feel worse, and I thought I actually might start crying, but then Billy patted me on the back and gave me a comforting smile. I wasn't sure how to react, so I didn't.

Dr. Mon te Seung's smirk grew as he flipped on several switches, bringing the lights on the portal machine to life and filling its "veins" with high-voltage electricity. Soon, a swirling mass began to form within the portal's hole, and it grew larger and larger as its spinning speed increased. I had never seen anything like it. This was truly an amazing sight.

Soon, a large circular mass of energy now filled the empty hole of the portal, and Dr. Mon te Seung jumped in front of it and threw his arms out widely. "THE GATEWAY...THE GATEWAY...IT IS NOW OPEN! THE GATEWAY...TO ANOTHER DIMENSION!" A small bolt of lightning burst out of the portal and zapped the doctor in the butt, knocking him over for a moment.

What an idiot...

Once he regained his composure, Dr. Mon te Seung chuckled and said, "A-Alright, then...uh, let's just set up the groups and get along with this little experiment, okay?"

"...I can't believe this is happening..." Eddy grumbled with a sigh.

After a while, the three groups were set up:

Group A.

1. Alex Mikami

2. Billy Jeeves

3. Sarah

4. Jackal

5. Marisa

6. Haley Storm

--

Group B.

1. Sammy Wo

2. Eddy

3. Moki

4. Magenta

5. Wally

6. Gob

--

Group C.

1. Redd Sanders

2. Teddy

3. Chan-Chan

4. Larry Nicoles

5. Zeke

6. Clarice

--

"GOOD! NOW GET GOING! GOOD LUCK...AND I HOPE MOST OF YOU GUYS DON'T DIE!" Dr. Mon te Seung exclaimed as he ushered the three groups into the portal before shutting it off. Group C entered first, then Group B...and finally, it was our turn.

I can do this...I can do this...

As I climbed through the swirling mass of energy, I felt like I was floating mid-air and slowly falling...and then I fell face-first into sand. It didn't help either that Billy, Sarah, Jackal, Haley and Marisa all landed on top of me either.

Spitting sand out of my mouth, I looked up and realized...we were now in the middle of a vast desert.

* * *

_**A/N: SO...PLEASE TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK!**_


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I'm really sorry that the ending part of the first chapter was so rushed, but it ended up having to be that way. Please don't let that make you think badly of the story, though...

ALSO, PLEASE REVIEW! I MEAN IT! I'D REALLY APPRECIATE IT, TOO! PLUS, IT'LL INFLUENCE ME TO CONTINUE THE STORY...

* * *

_Now, it's in third person P.O.V. for now..._

"W...What the hell is this?!" Alex asked aloud as he got up, brushing the sand off his clothes. No matter how far he looked, all he saw were hills and dunes made of sand. It went on for miles and miles. An entire wasteland devoid of life...or was it?

Even worse, the sun high up in the sky, which seemed several times larger than the sun back on Earth, was beating its ultra-violet rays down upon them. There wasn't any nearby shade, either.

'Oh my god...I can't believe this is really happening...'

"I'm...I'm afraid..." Sarah stammered, covering her face with her hands.

Alex peered far off, but he didn't see a single sign of any living being. 'I don't see the other groups...what could have happened to them?'

"Damn...it's hot..." Billy grunted, stretching out his back.

Snarling and looking pretty pissed, Marisa got to a stand and shouted, "WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS SHIT?! WE'VE...WE'VE GOTTA BE UNDER SOME KIND OF HYPNOSIS OR SOMETHING, RIGHT?! I MEAN...THIS CAN'T BE REAL!"

"Shut your mouth, bitch." Jackal snapped at her, seemingly unfazed of the current situation, "I hate whorish girls like you...this is as real as you and me."

"E-EXCUSE ME? WHORISH?! HOW DARE YOU-"

Jackal smirked defiantly. "Heh? What's wrong, whore? Did I...upset you?"

Walking up to the two of them, Billy yelled, "HEY! CUT IT OUT, BOTH OF YOU! WE IMMEDIATELY END UP IN THIS FUCKED-UP LITTLE GAME SET UP BY THE FUCKING GOVERNMENT, AND YOU TWO ARE AT EACH OTHER'S THROATS ALREADY!"

Marisa definitely didn't want to get on the bad side of a well-known former crime boss, so she gave in to his orders, as did a rather reluctant Jackal.

"Okay...I guess this is real, huh? We're stuck here for a whole goddamn month...great...just great..." Alex said aloud, sighing heavily.

"The other groups either ended up in different locations or already got themselves killed...I'm betting it's the former." Billy said, walking up alongside Alex, who was still a bit nervous around the big man.

Running her fingers through her hair, Haley whined, "Aww, dammit...intense heat like this always ruins my hair. Fuck..."

Taking a few steps forward, Billy scooped a handful of sand into his palm and watched as it slipped out from between his fingers for a moment. Sighing, he turned to the others and barked, "Alright then...let's get going."

"Get going? Where the hell are we even going?!" Haley snapped.

"Yeah!" added Marisa.

His expression now fierce, Billy shot back, "SHUT THE HELL UP! WE HAVE NO OTHER CHOICE BUT TO GO ONWARDS! WE'RE STUCK IN THIS PLACE FOR A WHOLE MONTH...AND OUR ONLY CHANCE FOR FREEDOM IS BY STAYING ALIVE! SO...THAT'S WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO!"

Crossing his arms, Jackal smirked and remarked, "Heh...they never learn..."

Sighing, Marisa pressed her palm against her face. "...I...I guess you're right..." she mumbled under her breath, "...let's just get going...before we pass out from heat stroke..."

"I just hope there aren't any other dangerous life forms in this dimension." Alex remarked, mostly to himself.

With Billy in the lead, Group A began to traverse across the seemingly endless desert wasteland...

* * *

Zeke cursed loudly as he dragged his heavy feet through the sand. "FUCK IT ALL! WHY IN THE FUCKIN' HELL DID I END UP SEPARATED FROM THE OTHERS?! GODDAMN MOTHERFUCKERS! DAMMIT! FUUUUUUUUUUCK...WHY DID THIS HAVE TO HAPPEN TO ME?!"

Somehow, upon his entrance to this new dimension, he had been warped to a different location than his group members, which is probably the worst thing to happen to you when in an unknown place with a high probability of danger.

'Hmm...no matter which direction I look, all I see is sand...WHAT THE FUCK AM I GONNA DO?!' Zeke wondered, clenching his teeth, 'Who knows what lives in this unexplored world? Damn...I gotta be careful...'

Suddenly, the ground began to rumble violently, and Zeke caught sight of something underneath the sand moving towards him. Screaming, he turned around and tried to run, but the thing chased after him was much, much faster. Bursting out of the ground, a giant worm-like monster, it's body covered in thin needles and a huge gaping mouth full of sharp teeth, rose up and let out a mighty roar.

It had no eyes, but it was able to sense out food with the pores on its skin, which were like super-sensitive nostrils. It towered over Zeke like as if he was standing underneath a 10-story building about to crash down on top of him.

"W...WHAT THE FUCK IS THIIIIIIIIIIIIIS?!" Zeke cried before the giant worm then brought its mouth down upon him and dove back into the sand, leaving no evidence of the man that had stood there only seconds ago...

...except for a small spot of blood.

* * *

Alex couldn't help but actually smile when he ran up one of the many sand hills, and caught sight of a small oasis not too far away. A single large palm tree with a small pond of water nearby. Turning to the others, who were already panting and sweating, he exclaimed, "HEY! I FOUND A PLACE TO REST! C'MON! IT'S JUST OVER THIS HILL!"

"R...Really, Alex-kun...?" Sarah asked, a slight smile on her pale face. For some reason, she liked using Japanese honorifics, despite the fact she was American. Of course, Alex himself didn't mind it so much. 'At least we have ONE nice girl in our group...' Alex thought.

"Ugh...it's probably just dirty, infested water anyway. We definitely can't drink it!" Marisa grunted once she reached the top of the sand hill along with the others.

"You never know. Still, the whore is right...which I hate having to admit." Jackal spoke up.

Throwing a punch at him, which he dodged easily, Marisa snapped, "WHY DO YOU KEEP MAKING FUN OF ME, YOU BASTARD?!"

Jackal shrugged. "I make fun of everyone, dumbass bitch. Get over it."

"...Make it stop..." Billy mumbled, becoming fed up with their petty arguing.

Once they reached the oasis, Alex got onto his knees on the pond's edge and peered over the surface of the water, just to make sure there wasn't anything dangerous possibly waiting for them. Luckily, there didn't seem to be a problem, so Alex took a quick sip by cupping some water into his hands.

"Hmm...it tastes alright..."

"LET ME TRY!" Haley Storm suddenly ran over, pushed Alex to the side, and practically stuck her head into the pond before pulling it back out and letting out a refreshed sigh, her face and hair dripping wet. "That's much better..."

'Geez...' Picking himself up, Alex brushed himself off and walked over to the large palm tree looming over them. He noticed several round objects hanging from the top branches, so he figured they were probably fruits of some sort. Unfortunately, they were too high up even for a giant like Billy, and there was nothing nearby to knock them down.

"...I still say we should be cautious..." Billy muttered as he stood in the shade and watched Marisa and Sarah took their turns drinking from the pond. Oddly enough, he and Jackal both seemed unaffected by the heat, and they just stood there with crossed arms and furrowed brows.

"Wow...this water is so fresh and clean, despite all the sand and dirt. It's amazing!" Sarah exclaimed, speaking loudly for the first time since coming to this weird dimension.

"...Uh-huh..." Marisa nodded and laid on her back as the shade protected her from the sun's rays.

Glancing around, Jackal caught sight of something interesting; a large, oddly-shaped accumulation of sand a few feet away...and he could make out part of a roof sticking out. Without a word, he shoved his hands into his pockets and began walking over to it.

"Hey! Where the hell do you think you're going?!" Billy snapped at him. Jackal ignored his words and swiped his hand across the sand, revealing an old red door. Looking over his shoulder, he called, "Hey, Billy and dumbass...come check this out."

'...He knows my name, though...' Alex thought as he and Billy walked over to Jackal, who was brushing off more and more sand, eventually uncovering what was most likely a small cabin. Due to so much sand covering it, Jackal was only able to get to the front door and the windows, but that was all enough needed to get in.

"H...Holy crap...there's a house here..." Billy said in amazement. Alex was speechless. The three girls just watched in silence from underneath the palm tree, wondering what was going on. It wasn't that their help wasn't needed, they just didn't want to help.

Jackal grabbed the doorknob, and it snapped off right in his palm. "Hmm...how do we get in?" Alex asked, a little afraid of what might be inside.

Jackal had the answer; he rose his right foot and smashed it agianst the door, shattered it into splinters. "Come on..." he grunted, and he walked inside without another word. Alex and Billy both exchanged nervous glances before following after their so-called ally.

The interior of the small decrepit cabin was rather empty; besides the sand that had seeped in through the walls and windows through the years, there wasn't much except for a single table lying in the middle of the room, and a box hidden underneath it. As they walked closer, Alex noticed there were three objects on top of the table: a glass of red liquid, a piece of parchment paper with something written, and...a human skull.

"Ugh..." Alex winced at the sight of the skull, but Jackal just walked over to the table, bent down, and pulled out the box. It was rather large, and shaped rectangular. It seemed to take all Jackal had just to carry it even a little. Placing it at Billy and Alex's feet, Jackal used his sand-covered hands to crack open the top of the box, revealing an assortment of weapons hidden within.

Smirking, Jackal said, "Heh...we could use this. Billy, help me carry this out. You, emo guy, see if there's anything else in here..."

'My name's not emo guy!' Alex thought as he watched Jackal and Billy exit the cabin while struggling to carry the weapons box with them, 'Dammit...why can't I just say what I feel? I'm so pathetic...'

Since it didn't seem there was anything else, Alex glanced at the letter atop the table. Picking it up, he tried to determine the language that the words were written in, but it was no use. He couldn't read it at all. Sighing, he crumbled the paper up and threw it over his shoulder as he headed back out into the smothering heat and quickly ran over to the oasis area, where everyone was already dividing the weapons amongst themselves.

"Damn...I haven't seen a katana this good for god knows how long..." Jackal remarked, sneering as he admired the long shining blade he held.

Taking up a can of hairspray and a cigarette lighter, Marisa held them close to her chest and let out a relieved sigh. "Ahh...finally, I can set things ABLAZE again...yes..."

"This'll do nicely..." Billy said to himself as he checked over the short-hand pistol for a third time.

"Mine." Haley Storm said, snatching up a pack of cigarettes that happened to be there.

Sarah remained silent as she took up a small pocket knife and stared at it.

The last weapon left in the box was for Alex...and it was a metal baseball bat.

Alex bit his lip. 'A...a metal bat...just like the one I used to kill those people...my parents...' His whole body shook, and sweat poured down his face. The horrid screams and shrieks of his victims pounded in his head. He thought his heart was going to burst out of his chest.

Alex opened his mouth to scream, but no words came out. 'Ahh...ahh...ahh...'

Sarah just stared at him, caught between either doing nothing or speaking up for his sake.

Noticing Alex was hesitating, Jackal rolled his eyes, snatched up the bat and forced it into Alex's shaking hands. "Here...it's yours. Now...you better use it to the best of your ability." he said before walking away without a second thought.

Alex couldn't believe that had just happened, but he didn't back down. He couldn't bring himself to do it...not at this point, especially.

Taking in a deep breath, Alex closed his eyes. 'Shockingly enough, he's right...I need to use it...I have no choice...'

Once he calmed down, Alex opened his eyes again and said, "Okay...let's go."

And so, the group took a final few drinks of water and then headed off into the blazing desert once again...and soon a giant forest with a large mountain towering overhead came into view.

This is where the story really begins...


End file.
